Improvement in purifying illuminating-gas



. to he a full, clear,

- as conducted on the old plan by A dust, ert, becomes a purifier bydamping it with UNITED STATES' PATENT OFFICE,

n. J. nnosvslnnou, or rants, FRANCE.

Specification forming part at Letters Patent Bio. 8.08], dated May 6,1851.

To an whom it may emtcemr I Be it known that I, FLOBENTIN Josnm rmQAYAILLON, of the city of Paris, France, have discovered certain new anduseful Improvements in the Manufacture of Illuminating- Gases and I dohereby declare the following same.

purifiers for illuminatingrgas, whereby I am on.- abled greatly toreduce the cost of purification a considerable diminution in consumptionof lime.-

My purifiers, although intended for gas pro.-

duced entirely from pit-coal, are equally appli-- cable to gases derivedfrom other substances,

or substances combined with pit-coal in the retorts, as follows: theofi'nl of kitchens in the form of animal waste-as bones, grease, &c.-

.theloleaginous residuum of seeds, also spent bark, sawdust, orpulverizedwood that has heen'employed in the purification of oils, alsopeat or turf. The above or either of them, when mixed with fit'typer'cent. o t' pit-coal by grinding, and combined so as to form acompactmass by the aid of some gummy or resinous matters or empyreumaticoil, orthe molasses of sugar, are properly introduced. in retorts ofcommon construction and the distillation efiected. in the usual manner,The products of such a composition are as follows: first, a veryfincc'arbureted hydrogen gas of high illuminating power; second, animalcharcoal -third, animal and vegetable-charcoal in powder, (this productmay be employed"for' various purposes, such as for preparation of.mau'ure;) fourth, empyreumatic oil mixed with tar; fifth, very richammoniacal water.

The purifying materials which 1 use may be divided into three elements,viz: substances which are naturaL purifiers, substances which have beenmade purifiers, andsubstauces which are inert. The substances which arepurifiers naturally are sulphate of lime, pulverized veg etable carbonor charcoal, animal charcoahthe sulphate and theoxide of lead. Thesubstance which is artificially made a purifier is sawwhich,although inits natural state infrom seven to eight per cent. of sulphuric acid. Theinert substances are sawdust without sulphuric acid, pulverized peat,pulverized spent bark'or tannin, sand, and pounded coke. Suluse,

and exact description of thedime.

photo. of lime is the principal ingredient I and it forms the base ofthe mixturenow to he described, the greater part of which consists ofthis substance in the form commonlyknown as plaster. I prefer to use oldplaster which has once been employed for build ing or other pnrposes,although'l do not 0011- fine myself to made. I therefore intend toinclude in the preparation of my purifying-powder any artificial, ornatural sulphate of lime without reference to the sulphate of limeartificially their origin or from whatever process they may have beenobtained. I have found that 'aprefere'nce is to be given to those"sulphates which-are derived from the manufacture of stearine candles,and also those sulphates obtained from the process of purifying oils orother substances which in their preparation ,or manufacture gives as.one of, their products artificial sulphates of lime. The second materialis coke pulverized and sifted and riveror other sand not too fine. Thethird is pnlverized vegetable charcoal; fourth, pulverized animalcharcoal; fit'th, sawdust; sixth, pulverized peat or turf; seventh,spentbark (tannin) reduced to powder; eighth,'s ulphate of lead mixedwith oxide of lead; ninth, sulphate and oxide of iron; tenth, thecarbonate of As the situation of the work's'and other circumstances mayrender itdifiicult to obtain a regular supply of'all the materials abovementioned, I do not think it advisable to state any precise quantitiesor proportions in which the a said materials, commencing -with coke,&c., are to be mixed with the sulphate of lime for the preparation orcomposition of the purifying-powder, as it may sometimes be foundconvenient to-increase-the proportions of some or diminish the quantityof others, or in some cases to omit-some of them altogether, which maybe done without detriment, provided the proper proportion between themand thesulphate of little is retained.

Thepurifying-powdcrshouldbecomppunded in such a manner that aboutseventy percent.

in volume of the mixture should consist of sulphate of lime. 0f theremaining thirty per cent. about one-third should be composed of eitherof the-above-mentioned purifying ingredients, and the balance from theinert matters-such as coke, sawdust, 8zo.--or the whole That found innature will also answer.

thirty percent. may be composed of the abovementioned inert substances.

' The powder is prepared as follows: Take a guantity of sulphate oflime, artificially prouced, f it can be had, and then select from theabove-mentioned ingredients as many as can be conveniently procured tothe amount of thirty per. cent. ol the bulk of the sulphate of liuie, asbefore stated. The whole is 'then' to be reduced to a powder andthoroughly mixed together, which done, the mass must be wetted withdilute sulphuric acid, or acidulated water weighing from six to sevendegrees of Baumes acid-weighing apparatus. Thiswetting operation shouldbe conducted in a similar manner to that adopted for adding com monwater to the lime which is usually employed or purifying gas containingsulphureted byf drogen.

I would here remark that if the sulphate of lime which is to be employediii the purifyingpowderis artificial, then it will not be necessary toadd any sulphuric acid; but it will be always necessary to wet the mass,which may be done with common water.

The purifying-powder thus prepared must be placed upon the sieves orperforated shelves of the purifiers, and it the perforated shelves ofthe purifiersare made of metal, then it.will be advisable to cover themwith moss, hay,

- straw, or some other suitable material before placing thepurifyingmateriais thereon, in

order that the holes in the shelves may not he stepped up by thepurifying materials; but it.

the shelves are made of wicker-work,this precaution will be unnecessary.The powder thus prepared is to be used-in connection with lime, as atpresent, and the quantity employed may be varied to, suit diti'erentcircumstances. In the gas-works in France in which my process hasbeenadopted it has been used in the proportion two thirds of the powderfor one- 3 s,ea'1

third .of lime, thus electing a savin ot'twothirds of the lime as:compared wi the old process. The puri in powder will take up theammonia, and. ii partiallyne'utralise the -snlphureted hydro and give tothe gasubri liancyandi lnm nating-powersuperior to that obtained bytheprocess now in use.

It'is scarcely necessary to say that when the puritying-powder isentirely saturated with ammonia, which will be easily ascertained byexposing to the current of gas some turmeric.

must be placed firstupon theperforated shelves of the purifier and thencovered with the lime. If the current of gas is made todescend, the limemust be placed first upon the shelves and covered with thepurifying-powder.-

What Iv claim as of my own invention and discovery, and desire to secureby Letters Patent of the United States, is-

The .pnrit'yins-l -wder .Ior illuminating-gas,

said powder consisting of sulphate of lime,

either natural or artificial, in connection with some inert substance orsubstances partly inert and partly rendered purifiers, when compoundedin the proportions substantially as described herein.

FL0BENTIN J0SEPH DE CAVAHJDN. Witnesses:

Joan .BARTLY, F. PAYEN.

